A jury has found a 19-year-old man guilty of first-degree murder in the killing of a York Regional Police officer.

The 12 jurors deliberated for three days and twice sought the judge’s assistance before arriving at a verdict Thursday night.

Const. Garrett Styles pulled over a van during a routine traffic stop in Newmarket in the early hours of June 28, 2011. The then 15-year-old driver sped away with Styles clinging onto the door for about 300 metres before it flipped over and he was pinned underneath it. Styles died an hour later in hospital. The teenager was left a quadriplegic after the crash.

Styles was married with a two-year-old daughter and a nine-week-old son.

Peter J. Thompson/National PostMelissa Styles looks on as her husband's casket Constable Garrett Styles #1405 is placed into a hearse after a funeral service for her husband, in Newmarket, Ontario on July 5, 2011. Garrett was killed in the line of duty after stopping a van on June 28.

His widow, Melissa, said she was pleased with the sentencing in a joint statement with Styles’ father, Garry, a retired York police officer, and York Regional Police Chief Eric Jolliffe.

“All we ever wanted was for the accused to be held accountable for his actions which cost Garrett his life,” Melissa said. “We are pleased with the outcome in this trial. This serves as a reminder to all that there are consequences to the choices you make.”

The driver could only be identified as S.K. because of a publication ban relating to his age at the time of the crash.

First-degree murder sentences are accompanied by an automatic life term with no chance of parole for 25 years.

]]>http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/teenager-found-guilty-of-murder-for-2011-death-of-york-police-officer-garrett-styles/feed0stdYork Region Police Chief Eric Jolliffe (left) delivers a statement to the media, Tuesday afternoon, June 28, 2011 in the Great Hall at the Region Of York Administrative Centre in Newmarket, Ontario, after York Regional Police officer Garrett Styles died after being struck by a vehicle at a traffic stop outside Newmarket.Peter J. Thompson/National PostMissing Vaughan man found dead in Toronto in alleged homicide, police seek two suspectshttp://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/missing-vaughan-man-found-dead-in-toronto-in-alleged-homicide-police
http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/missing-vaughan-man-found-dead-in-toronto-in-alleged-homicide-police#commentsSat, 13 Jun 2015 22:12:58 +0000http://news.nationalpost.com/?p=796832

TORONTO — An arrest warrant for first-degree murder has been issued for a New Brunswick man and Quebec woman in connection with the slaying of an Ontario man.

Police say Clyde Marshall, 36, of New Brunswick and Sabrina Chouart, 27, of Gatineau, Que. are wanted in the death of Sina Parsi.

The Kleinburg, Ont. man was found dead on Friday night in a Toronto apartment. Parsi was last seen in the Toronto suburb of Vaughan.

Police are advising Marshall and Chouart to give themselves up and suggested they might want to seek legal advice.

He also says any friends or associates who help the two wanted people could face criminal charges.

Police found Parsi’s pickup in a parking lot on Thursday, but there was no sign of the 32-year-old man.

Parsi did not have his cellphone or wallet with him and had not contacted any friends or family since he had gone missing.

Police aren’t revealing the cause of death and are providing few other details.

Investigators say they believe they have a motive but aren’t making the information public.

]]>http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/missing-vaughan-man-found-dead-in-toronto-in-alleged-homicide-police/feed0stdA York Regional Police car seen in June 2011.Richmond Hill family traumatized by police raid on their home after falling victim to ‘swatting’ prankhttp://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/richmond-hill-family-traumatized-by-police-raid-on-their-home-after-falling-victim-to-swatting-prank
http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/richmond-hill-family-traumatized-by-police-raid-on-their-home-after-falling-victim-to-swatting-prank#commentsMon, 25 May 2015 21:19:59 +0000http://news.nationalpost.com/?p=779903

When police burst into a Toronto-area home early Sunday morning, complete with emergency firepower, they were under the impression that the homeowner was barricaded inside, having killed his family with an assault rifle.

Terrified children were led from the house in suburban Richmond Hill and a man and woman were handcuffed.

But it didn’t take long to establish that the police responders, commonly referred to as a SWAT team, and the residents had been the targets of a phone prank, known as swatting.

“I just saw guns. Big guns,” the homeowner, Vincent Yan, told the CBC. “Will I be able to sleep peacefully? I really don’t know.”

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“Our communications people will do the best job they can to vet the information coming in. The challenge though is that time is of the essence. This, for us, would be considered an active shooting call,” Pattenden said in an interview with the National Post.

In this particular case it’s great that no one was injured. Traumatized I’m sure, but not injured

The resulting raid can be traumatic for the victims, according to Pattenden, as officers enter the home with guns drawn.

“In this particular case it’s great that no one was injured. Traumatized I’m sure, but not injured,” Pattenden said, though he is unaware of any cases where families have been injured by police.

In the aftermath of these incidents, police take steps to try to explain the situation to the victims and ensure their recovery, he said.

“We’re not just going to burst in and then run away,” Pattenden said. “So any amount of time that would be required to talk to all of the family members would be taken. In the event that they were still upset, victim services could be called in due to the traumatic nature of the situation.”

Pattenden noted there is an ongoing investigation to try to find the prank caller, but doing so will be difficult.

“These calls can be challenging because they could be technically coming from anywhere in the world.”

“Numerous “swatting” incidents have occurred across the country, with at least four teenagers being charged in 2014.

Earlier this month a Coquitlam, B.C., teen pleaded guilty to 23 “swatting” related charges. The teenager, who was arrested in December 2014, launched a string of similar pranks in 2014 from October to November.

The teen’s wrath was directed at a Winter Haven, Fla., girl he had met online months before. After his attempts at forming an online relationship with her failed, the teen targeted her home and high school with swatting pranks.

The pranks on the girl’s high school resulted in the building being locked down for several hours as police searched for a shooter. The teen was caught after local police traced the calls back to B.C. and got in touch with the RCMP.

Last year, an Ottawa teen was charged with 60 offences connected to at least 30 swatting incidents. The 16-year-old is alleged to have launched pranks against schools in Calgary and Milton, as well as other targets reaching as far as California.

The teen taunted police online throughout, and bragged that he was being paid to pull the pranks by people with an interest in harming the victims.

A group of hackers, who claim the teen is innocent, have since attacked websites of several groups involved with the case against him, including Ottawa and Toronto police websites.

Two other teens, in Milton and Laval, were arrested in swatting-related cases in 2014.

The dangers extend beyond traumatizing victims, and can be costly, according to multiple police forces.

Officers in Stockton, Calif., spent more than $500,000 responding to swatting pranks allegedly perpetrated by the teen arrested in Ottawa.

Police have also pointed out that the pranks divert law enforcement officers from real cases.

Despite this recent string of incidents in Canada, “swatting” is not a new phenomenon.

The FBI has used the term “swatting” since at least 2008, with some of the earliest reported cases dating back to 2002. In 2013, a range of celebrities were targeted, including Justin Bieber, Chris Brown, Tom Cruise, Miley Cyrus, Snoop Dogg and Clint Eastwood.

]]>http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/richmond-hill-family-traumatized-by-police-raid-on-their-home-after-falling-victim-to-swatting-prank/feed0stdPJT-12BrimwoodCres-4.jpgChild porn investigation that started in Ontario eventually spanned 17 countries and led to 41 arrests, police sayhttp://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/child-porn-investigation-that-started-in-ontario-eventually-spanned-17-countries-and-led-to-41-arrests-police-say
http://news.nationalpost.com/news/canada/child-porn-investigation-that-started-in-ontario-eventually-spanned-17-countries-and-led-to-41-arrests-police-say#commentsWed, 06 May 2015 18:13:49 +0000http://news.nationalpost.com/?p=764942

Police in Ontario say a year-long international effort to bust child pornographers has led to dozens of arrests around the world.

York Regional Police on Wednesday revealed details of the operation, which eventually included the RCMP, Interpol, and the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and FBI, and others. The investigation resulted in 41 arrests in 17 different countries over 100 criminal charges; 19 victims of child pornography have also been identified.

Investigators with the the police force’s Internet Child Exploitation (ICE) unit launched Project Hydra in April 2014 after getting a tip about child pornography being uploaded from an address in York Region, where police “learned that it was a young person who had uploaded the images,” according to a police release.

“The investigation led to an online social networking application that the young person had visited where unknown people around the world were exchanging child pornography.”

York Regional Police did not say which social networking application, in particular, was used to spread images of child exploitation, but listed several email and social media accounts including one for Vichatter, a live video chat service popular in Russia.

Law enforcement around the world have started their own investigations, including an RCMP probe in New Brunswick related to a 24-year-old male suspect from Moncton with possibly more than 2,000 victims around the world. RCMP say the man disguised himself online as a teenage girl and convinced boys to perform lewd acts on camera, which he then recorded and redistributed. The suspect was arrested in February and charged with sex-related offences.

According to police, most of the suspects arrested in Project Hydra were located in Canada, the U.S. and U.K.

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The next day, police say a man went into another a Richmond Hill tanning salon and began asking a female questions about her boots.

It’s alleged the man grabbed the victim’s leg, removed her boot and sock and licked her foot without her consent, then took both the boot and sock and fled the scene.

Similar incidents were reported at tanning salons in Aurora, Innisfil and Bradford.

On Wednesday, Mattieu Petrin turned himself in to York Regional Police. The 28-year-old Innisfil man is charged with four counts of sexual assault, three counts of theft under $5,000, sexual interference with a person under 16 and robbery.

The family of an 18-year-old woman who was hit and killed by an unmarked police car has filed a $2.2-million civil lawsuit against the York Regional Police Service.

Natasha Carla Abogada was crossing St. Clair Ave. E, west of Warden Avenue on Feb. 12 just after 8 p.m., when she was struck by a black Ford F-150.

“This was a tragic event and Carla’s family is suffering,” said critical injury lawyer John McLeish, who is representing Ms. Abogado’s parents, brother and sister.

“This family is in pain. They are a wonderful, hardworking, and close family,” Mr. McLeish added.

The family also names Const. Remo Romano in the civil lawsuit.

The Crown laid a charge of dangerous driving causing death in June against Const. Romano.

‘I’m looking forward to seeing the data on the black box, as it will give details on the police officer’s speed and whether he attempted to brake’

The statement of claim, which includes allegations not proven in court, says the vehicle was being driving too fast when it hit Ms. Abogado and the driver did not keep a proper lookout for pedestrians, said Mr. McLeish in a statement.

“Those are unproven allegations but we feel that in our view, given the circumstances of the collision, and what we are hearing from hearsay, we feel those are in fact the situation,” said Mr. McLeish. “We do feel very comfortable in those two allegations.”

The police car was equipped with an event data recorder, also known as a black box, and contains information about the collision that the Abogado family does not know yet, said Mr. McLeish.

“I’m looking forward to seeing the data on the black box, as it will give details on the police officer’s speed and whether he attempted to brake.”

A 48-year old man was transported to Sunnybrook Hospital with serious injuries following a confrontation with York Regional Police in the area of Davis Drive and Lorne Avenue in Newmarket early Tuesday.

According to police, officers responded to a 911 call at approximately 12:05 a.m. from a man reporting that someone with a gun was firing shots near an apartment building on Davis. When they arrived at the scene, the man advanced on the officers, who were forced to shoot him.

No officers were harmed in the confrontation, and the man has been transported to hospital with serious injuries.

The Special Investigations Unit is investiging, along with the York Regional Police.

“All we can say right now is that we have assigned five investigators and three forensic investigators to investigate the incident,” said Jasbir Brar, a spokesman for the SIU.

The Newmarket investigation began the same day the SIU concluded an investigation into a shooting in November 2013.

The SIU report said there were “no reasonable grounds” to charge the officer who shot a man in an apartment near Kipling Avenue after being threatened with a knife.

On Monday the police force sent out a series of tweets and a video on how to peel a banana.

“I would love to tell you that there was a ton of strategic planning, high-level thinking and the start of a month-long national campaign,” said Constable Andy Pattenden of York Regional Police. “But all of that would be untrue.”

“We enjoy having fun with Twitter and today was no exception.”

The idea for the instructional fruit videos began when Pattenden noticed another officer was peeling a banana from the bottom up, rather than the traditional top-down approach.

“You see, us police officers are highly trained investigators and even the little things catch our attention,” said Pattenden.

“Instead of just leaving the observation alone, I decided to discuss the revolutionary method by which he accessed the fruit and it lead to plenty of discussion around the office.”

“#openmindedmonday was created, because it was Monday and we encourage our over 23,000 followers to look at things that we might do every day, in a different sort of way. It also adds a little humour to the tweets.”

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BD8eOwjOaFg&w=620&h=405]

When asked about whether there would be future sessions of Open-Minded Monday, or even all new hash tag days, Pattenden would not give away any details.

“As for what the future holds, I can’t give that secret away,” he said. “All that we can do is encourage everyone to stay tuned to our Twitter account on @YRP.”

York Region’s police have been known to come up with unusual tweets in the past, educating the public with humorous messages. During a campaign for safe boat operation during the Canada Day weekend, police tweeted out “For those who don’t know a PCOC is not a bird with colourful tail feathers, it’s a Pleasure Craft Operator Card.”

York Regional Police employs 2,200 full-time employees and more than 1,500 officers.

One man is dead and police are searching for another after a daylight shooting in the parking lot of a Woodbridge café that was under renovation.

The timing, method and history of the place all suggest it may have been a Mafia hit. Sources confirm the victim was a known mobster.

Gun shots were heard about 2 p.m., Thursday, and emergency crews found a man, obviously dead, lying beside a car in the parking lot near the Regina Sports Café on Regina Road, near Highway 7 and Martin Grove Road, just north of the border with Toronto, said Constable Andy Pattenden of York Regional Police.

He appeared to have been shot several times. The coroner arrived shortly after 5 p.m. but police have not identified the victim. He is described as a man in his late 40s or early 50s. The description of a suspect in the shooting is even more vague, a male driving a grey compact car who was seen by witnesses leaving the scene, Const. Pattenden said.

The area is known to have been frequented by organized crime figures in the past but police had no information if there was any link. Const. Pattenden declined to say if the force’s intelligence unit and officers specializing in the mob are also involved.

“It is a spot that a lot of Italian organized crime figures would be seen at, for years,” said a police source. Over 20 years, people who would later become prominent in the local Mafia organization were seen at the plaza. In the past, the premise has been suspected to have housed illicit gambling activity.

Homicide detectives are investigating and a heavy police presence was in the neighbourhood. Police do not know what led up to the shooting, said Const. Pattenden and he urged anyone who witnessed anything suspicious in the area to contact police.

“The man who died lay almost at my front door,” said Amir Wahab, owner of Checkered Flag Motorcar, a used car dealer in the plaza. He said he left on an errand a few minutes before the shooting and when he returned about 20 minutes later police would not let him return to his business and police cars were blocking access.

A sign says the place is called Regina Sports Café, Mr. Wahab said it was still under renovation after being taken over about a year ago by new Italian owners who planned to make it a hot table restaurant selling veal sandwiches and other Italian items.

“It’s not even open yet. They’re going to open soon,” he said.

It was most recently an Iraqi restaurant until the owner died of cancer. Back then it hosted casual gambling at evening card games.

One business owner in the plaza, who asked that his name not be published, said the unit has changed names and managers or owners several times. His employees had been asked by police to leave the plaza.

The shooting was in a parking lot of a U-shaped strip mall of stores, cafes, auto mechanics, sports and social clubs and other small businesses just north of Highway 407.

York Regional Police have charged 10 men with more than 95 criminal offences after a two-month sexual exploitation and human trafficking investigation involving girls as young as 14.

Det.-Sgt. Peter Casey said investigations identified 31 girls working in the sex trade, with almost 30% under the age of 18 and the majority not from the York Region.

Police interviews with the 31 victims found that the average age they entered the sex trade was 14, with 10% of the girls saying they entered at 13.

The victims were mainly from elsewhere in Ontario, Quebec and Newfoundland; only three were from York region.

The accused include Anthony Putzu, 21, of Brampton, Lucas Gabrys, 24, of London and Mohamed Wehelie, 28, from Toronto. The 10 accused are from Mississauga, Toronto, Brampton, Ottawa, Calgary and London.

Putzu faces 13 charges, including human trafficking, obtaining the sexual services of a person under 18 and living on the avails of a juvenile prostitute. Gabrys faces 10 charges for allegedly procuring young girls online and forcing them to work in the sex trade. Wehelie’s charges relate to an alleged sexual assault after he sought out sex trade workers online. Police say they fear he may reoffend.

Det.-Sgt. Casey reminds that “our victims can be anyone” and says police are making “aggressive efforts” to get young women out of the sex trade.

Investigators hope to speak with more people who may require assistance or a way out.

Police believe there are more victims out there with connections to the three main accused and ask that anyone with information contact York Regional Police at 1-866-876-5423 ext. 7817 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS.

]]>http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/york-region-human-trafficking-investigation-arrests-ten-in-sex-trade-case-involving-young-teens/feed0stdBg2WgWECMAAIKZeYork Regional Police say they have charged 10 men with more than 95 criminal offences after a two-month sexual exploitation and human trafficking investigationSIU investigates death of woman hit by unmarked police vehicle in Scarboroughhttp://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/siu-investigates-death-of-woman-hit-by-unmarked-police-vehicle-in-scarborough
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The Special Investigations Unit is looking into the death of an 18-year-old woman who was struck down by an unmarked police vehicle in Scarborough Wednesday night.

The pedestrian appears to have been hit by an unmarked pickup truck at around 8:20 p.m. while crossing mid-block on St. Clair Avenue East, west of Warden Avenue. An on-duty York Regional Police officer was driving the pickup.

Kim McKinnon, spokesperson for EMS Services, said paramedics tried to resuscitate the woman, but she was pronounced dead at the scene.

McKinnon said that emergency crews only looked at the 18-year-old woman. It is unclear if the driver of the truck was injured.

The SIU has assigned seven investigators, two forensic investigators and one collision reconstructionist to examine this incident.

The SIU is a watchdog agency that investigates reports involving police that results in serious injury, death or allegations of sexual assault.

A 39-year-old Toronto man has been charged with child abandonment after a two-year-old girl was left unattended in a car Tuesday night.

The incident occurred in the Costco parking lot in Markham.

Const. Laura Nicolle of York Regional Police said a citizen noticed the young girl inside a vehicle shortly before 7 p.m. and notified police. The car was not turned on and the witness said it was cold to the touch.

Officers arrived on the scene at Woodbine and Highway 7 to help the child, who was in the car for approximately 40 minutes.

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After being assessed by paramedics, police say the toddler appeared to be OK.

The name of the accused has not yet been released. His court date will be February 26 in Newmarket.

Temperatures in the region dipped to a low of -19 C Tuesday night. Environment Canada warned people to beware of frostbite and hypothermia on Tuesday, saying both could occur within less than 15 minutes if a person is not adequately bundled up for the cold weather.

On Tuesday, a New Jersey bus driver was fired after a three-year-old boy was left on board for nearly six hours without heat, food or water.

The bus company’s manager said the driver ignored the child reminder system alarm, which requires the driver to walk to the back of the bus to deactivate. The driver instead walked outside the bus and disabled the alarm from the back door, presumably not realizing there was still a child on the bus.

York Regional Police caution everyone to understand the consequences of leaving children and pets in vehicles during extreme weather conditions and ask anyone who sees a child or animal locked inside a vehicle in extreme heat or cold to call 911.

Nearly a year after York Regional Police Const. Dameian Muirhead became a minor folk hero after reportedly being disciplined for not investigating racial slurs made against him, Chief Eric Jolliffe issued a statement Monday saying the officer was actually being disciplined for something else entirely.

“Media reports that Constable Muirhead was being disciplined for failing to investigate racial slurs made against him are simply inaccurate,” said Chief Jolliffe in the statement, which did not say why the officer was being disciplined.

The issue dates back to the spring of 2011, when Const. Muirhead arrested Rheal Duguay of Aurora for uttering threats against an officer. Mr. Duguay had allegedly encountered Const. Huirhead at an Aurora gas station and told him he would “kick his ass” if the officer didn’t have a badge and a gun.

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The arrest itself did not raise any eyebrows, but what ultimately prompted disciplinary hearings was Const. Muirhead’s assertion — made in a police report — that Mr. Duguay’s insult had been racially motivated.

Const. Muirhead is black, but Mr. Duguay did not actually say anything racist before his arrest.

Rather, Const. Muirhead was alleged to have based the claim entirely on Mr. Duguay’s association with an incident four days earlier in which the officer had been called to a bush party attended by the Aurora man.

It was there that a drunken attendee shouted at Const. Muirhead that he would “love to see that guy hanging from a tree,” but the attendee was not Mr. Duguay.

Nevertheless, spurred on by Const. Muirhead and his lawyer, news reports quickly began to make the rounds about the cop who failed to “investigate racial taunts against himself.”

Throughout, York Regional Police were legally bound not to comment about the case.

As Chief Jolliffe said in Monday’s statement, “we were forced to remain silent while this police service endured a series of baseless accusations and attempts to tarnish the exemplary record of racial and cultural inclusivity which is the hallmark of York Regional Police.”

The Chief also alleged that Const. Muirhead and his legal team refused his overtures to informally resolve the misconduct through a written reprimand, preferring to drag the issue out into a messy, days-long disciplinary hearing, which recently wrapped up.

“Despite the hearing officer’s efforts to maintain decorum and civility within the hearing room, it became apparent that legal counsel could not be deterred from derailing the process through personal attacks against the prosecutor, a police witness and the hearing officer himself,” wrote Chief Jolliffe.

Ultimately, said the Chief, the spiraling costs of the hearings forced police to suspend disciplinary proceedings against Const. Muirhead.

A Richmond Hill man could face up to five years in jail after allegedly renting a plane to go stunt flying over his friend’s house.

Christian Nardoni, 26, was arrested on Sunday at Markham Airport after York Regional Police received numerous calls from people nearby concerned about a small plane, believed to be a Cessna 172, that was flying dangerously low to houses and parks. He was charged with dangerous operation of an aircraft.

Police started to receive calls around 5 o’clock on Sunday evening and police cruisers followed the airplane from the ground.

The plane appeared to be climbing into the sky before stalling and falling back to low altitudes.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLr5iLmcTRY&w=640&h=390]

Police and air traffic controllers were unable to get in touch with the plane while it was in flight.

Believing the plane was having mechanical problems and in danger of crashing, police closed Bayview Avenue from Elgin Mills Road to Major Mackenzie Drive at around 5:30 p.m. to provide a runway for emergency landing.

The road was reopened minutes later and the plane landed safely around 5:45 p.m. at Markham Airport, on Highway 48 north of Elgin Mills Road, from where it had taken off. Police arrested Mr. Nardoni on the tarmac after he parked the plane.

Constable Andy Pattenden said he had never seen the dangerous operation of an aircraft charge laid before. It carries similar punishment to the dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.

Mr. Nardoni appeared in court Monday morning. He was released on bail and will appear in Newmarket Court on September 4.

York Region Police are asking eye witnesses or anyone with photos or videos of the plane to contact them.

]]>http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/richmond-hill-man-charged-after-allegedly-renting-a-plane-stunt-flying-it-over-friends-house/feed0stdYork Regional Police received numerous calls from people nearby concerned about a small plane, believed to be a Cessna 172 similar to the plane shown here, that was flying dangerously low to houses and parks‘A bittersweet, but fitting tribute': New park named after slain York police officer Garrett Styleshttp://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/a-bittersweet-but-fitting-tribute-new-park-named-after-slain-york-police-officer-garrett-styles
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The new park is located in the Keswick subdivision Const. Styles and his young family called home.

“He would have been there all the time with his own kids,” said Joe Styles, 29, Garrett’s cousin and a five-year veteran of the York force. Mr. Styles petitioned the town of Georgina to dedicate the park to his cousin.

“It’s bittersweet, but it’s a fitting tribute to Garrett — a great person, a great father, and a great police officer.”

Const. Styles was struck and killed in June 2011 when a 15-year-old unlicensed driver allegedly attempted to flee a traffic stop. The 32-year-old officer died, while the accused, who stands charged with first-degree murder, was paralyzed from the neck down.

]]>http://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/a-bittersweet-but-fitting-tribute-new-park-named-after-slain-york-police-officer-garrett-styles/feed1stdYork Regional Police Constable Garrett Styles, 32, a seven-year veteran, who was struck by a vehicle on Highway 48 near Herald Road in the Town of East Gwillimbury, Ontario (near Newmarket, Onario) shortly after 5 a.m. on June 28, 2011.Girl, 4, dies in hospital days after she was pulled from a pool while attending private day camp in Vaughan: policehttp://news.nationalpost.com/toronto/girl-4-dies-in-hospital-days-after-she-was-pulled-from-a-pool-while-attending-private-day-camp-in-vaughan-police
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A four-year-old girl who was pulled from a pool in Vaughan, Ont., earlier this week has died in hospital, police say.

York Regional Police say the girl was at a private day camp on Tuesday at a large fitness centre when she was found by a staff member.

Police said she had been underwater for up to two minutes before she was found, and it’s unclear whether there was a lifeguard or a supervisor around the pool at the time.

Police say CPR was immediately performed on the girl, who was pulled from the pool without any vital signs.

The coroner will be leading an investigation into the death and police are still looking for any witnesses who were at the pool at that time.

Jewish activists say a Toronto-area rabbi has been pressured by an area police force to change plans to host a controversial anti-Islamist speaker, prompting accusations the force is squelching free speech.

Rabbi Mendel Kaplan, of the Chabad @ Flamingo Synagogue, cancelled plans to host a talk by Pamela Geller, an American blogger known for her criticism of Islam. She is co-founder of Stop Islamification of America, a group that opposes the proposed building of a mosque at Ground Zero and sponsors anti-Islamic ads in U.S. cities.

Police dispute allegations that there were any threats of intimidation, saying instead that “a discussion” took place Tuesday between Insp. Ricky Veerappan, leader of the York Regional Police force’s diversity, equity and inclusion bureau, and Rabbi Kaplan, who is also a volunteer chaplain with the force. Insp. Veerappan said that during their discussion, the rabbi was presented with more information and a decision.

“If he had not cancelled the event – and again, that was his decision – then we would have had to re-evaluate his relationship with York Regional Police because it would be clearly be in contravention of the values of our organization,” said Insp. Veerappan.

“Our concern is that Rabbi Kaplan is also a representative of the police, he wears a police uniform, and some of the comments that have been attributed to Ms. Geller really posed a conflict situation for us at York Regional Police.”

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The force chaplaincy, to which Rabbi Kaplan belongs, falls under the police bureau of diversity, equity and inclusion, which aims to promote diversity and cultural education in York Region. There are eight chaplains who represent the area’s five largest faith groups.

Insp. Veerappan said Rabbi Kaplan made the decision to cancel his Thornhill synagogue’s hosting of the May 13 talk, which has since been relocated to the Toronto Zionist Centre.

A receptionist at the Chabad @ Flamingo Synagogue said Rabbi Kaplan was not available Thursday and would not be speaking to media.

The American Freedom Defense InitiativeA poster that was placed in New York City's subway system in 2012 by a group run by Pamela Geller.

Meir Weinstein, director of the Jewish Defence League, the hardline group sponsoring the event, told the National Post he was shocked and mystified as to why the police got involved.

“They took a position against Pamela Geller – our right to have her to speak.”

Salim Mansur, a tenured professor at Western University, wrote a letter to police Chief Eric Jolliffe, criticizing what he considers a constraint on free speech.

“Are we turning into one of those Third World countries where a police chief can pick up the phone and tell a free institution, in this case a religious institution, that you can not do this and you can do this?” he said by phone on Thursday.

“I’m speaking here as a Muslim. I’m terribly angry and upset that these people in the name of my religion and my tradition want to stop somebody else from speaking.”

He suggested that those who took issue with Ms. Geller’s talk should simply bring in someone to counter her points.

“They have the right to complain but that doesn’t mean that right to complain conflates into an action that goes against the very values about this society,” he said.

Cara Zwibel of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association agreed that while instances where police infringe on free speech is certainly problematic, intervention in this particular case may have been warranted.

“In general, police involvement in deciding who can speak where and when is something we are concerned about because it could have a big impact on freedom of expression,” she said by e-mail Thursday.

“Having said that, in this case it appears the police force was concerned that they might be seen as endorsing the speaker’s views because of their relationship with the synagogue’s rabbi. In these circumstances, I don’t think it is illegitimate for the police to raise this concern with the rabbi intending to host the event.”

York Regional Police said they would not discourage the event from taking place. “Ms. Geller is free to speak. The organization may move it to another location, that’s great,” said Insp. Veerappan.